Sunday, June 24, 2007

What Do Tulsans Want? City Finds Some Expected Answers

Those are some of the concerns expressed by citizens in surveys and in a series of recent public meetings, the Tulsa World reported in its Sunday edition. Reporter Brian Barber noted that city officials used as computer program called "Many Eyes" to identify trends in the data.

Barber quoted Pat Treadway, the city's urban management director, as a source for the story. Treadway said the city is preparing a blueprint for Tulsa's future and the ideas collected in surveys and public meetings are a part of that process.

According to the World, the process is just beginning and citizens will have many more opportunities to offer ideas to city planners.

We confess that we haven't participated in the process. But we can't quarrel with the public's ideas so far: a safer, greener, more vibrant city with good schools and transportation seems like a winner for just about everybody.

Still, talk is cheap and thus far a revitalized Tulsa is just talk. But maybe, just maybe, this is the first step for the city and its citizens to forge a new vision for Tulsa.